Travel Destinations: Anyang, Henan Province, China

Anyang, with a population of 792,000 people, is situated on the ancient city of Yin, the last capital of one of the earliest dynasties of China, the Shang. In the late 19th century, peasants discovered fragments of tortoise shell, inscribed with an ancient form of Chinese writing, as well as some wonderful bronze objects. This led to the belief that Anyang was the last capital of the Shang Dynasty. In fact, it is from these ancient inscriptions that modern Chinese is founded upon.

Anyang, whether you love history or not, has some wonderful places to visit, but history does dominate the tourist attractions.

The first sight you should see is the Museum of Yin Ruins (Yinxu Bowuguan). This museum showcases and presents the history of Yin and its incredible achievements. There are displays of pottery, fragments of the famous oracle bones, bronzes and jade artefacts as well as some wonderful tomb reconstructions. To get here, take the number 1 bus from the train station and get off at the museum drop-off place; from here cross the railway tracks and head along the river for about 10 minutes.

Another place to visit is the Tomb of Yuan Shikai (Yuan Shikai Mu). This is the grand resting place of the Qing military official who took the presidency from Sun Yatsen. Yuan Shikai attempted to bring China back to an imperial system and proclaimed himself emperor in 1916. The tomb is situated around 3km east of the Yin Museum. You can get here by taking the number 2 bus from the train station; get off at the bridge and walk northwards to the tomb.

Anyang has some wonderful streets to wander around and get a sense of a true historical city. Wander around the old section of town; this is situated east of the train station, south of Jiefang Dadao. Here you can see the old Drum Tower (Zhong Luo) which still survives. You can also visit the Tianning Temple (Tianming Si), located in the heart of town, as well as the Wenfeng Pagoda); this is a lovely five tired pagoda which you can climb and reward yourself with some incredible views and beautiful Buddhist carvings.

Anyang is reachable by train or bus; it is on the Beijing-Zhengzhou train route and there are regular trains to Xingxiang, as well as easy connections to Guangzhou and Shijiazhuang. If coming or going via long distance bus, there are also regular routes to Zhengzhou (three hours), Luoyang (four hours) and Kaifeng (four hours).

Boasting its magnificent and ancient history, Anyang has a deep sense of pride in itself; in addition to this, it can also pride itself on beautiful architecture, delicious food and some of the friendliest people in China.